1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates generally to blowers for use in conjunction with loading/unloading contents into/out of tractor trailers, and more specifically to hydraulically driven blower systems for moving bulk feed into/out of a pickup trailer.
2. Description of Prior Art
Bulk material, such as feed, is generally transported in tractor trailers having several independently accessible compartments formed in the trailer. A pneumatic/hydraulic vacuum system driven by the power take-off on the truck is provided for powering a motor that energizes a floor auger that moves the material towards a discharge auger, and the discharge auger that moves the material to/from the compartments. The trailers are typically equipped with dual hydraulic circuits of 20-25 gpm each which can operate at a maximum of 2500 psi, without a blower, and the trailer includes two hydraulic circuits; one for the floor auger and the other for the discharge auger.
This arrangement therefore requires two individual hydraulic circuits to unload the trailer through the discharge auger system, and the trailer further requires at least one hydraulic circuit to drive an airlock during the vacuum loading operation (“pickup” operation). A blower that can power a standard system needs to be rated at least at 800 cfm, thus requiring at least 40-50 gpm at 2500 psi of horsepower.